After The Whistle: Evaluating the Bears' defense in the win over Washington
If the Chicago Bears had a nickel for every time they won a game by a 25-24 score, they’d have two nickels.
That’s not a lot, but still interesting that it’s happened twice this season.
In fact, it’s the first time in NFL history that an NFL team won back-to-back games by the specific score of 25-24. It’s the second time in NFL history that a team won back-to-back games by the same score.
The Bears did so in dramatic fashion.
Here are our takeaways from the Bears’ 25-24 win over the Commanders, where the Bears shook the "Fail Mary" monkey off their back.
The Bears dealt Washington a taste of their own medicine
For the better part of a year, the Bears were living with the sting of the "Fail Mary." It was brought up numerous times this past week, revisited with Tyrique Stevenson and discussed across different players.
The Bears dealt the Commanders a similar feeling on Monday night.
Was it as dramatic as last year’s Hail Mary? No, of course not.
But, it still smacked the Commanders right in the face all the same.
Washington was up eight in the fourth quarter. They collapsed hard in a way the entire team will remember for most of the season.
"That one stings," Commanders head coach Dan Quinn said.
The trenches shined for the Bears
The Bears came into Monday with two issues: 1. The rushing attack was struggling to find success and 2. The run defense was struggling to hold teams at bay.
Monday was an example of the work both the offensive line and defensive line had put in during the bye week.
The offense finished the game with 27 combined carries for 145 rushing and an average of 5.4 yards per carry. That’s the kind of success the Bears were looking for on the ground.
A lot of credit goes to Darnell Wright and Theo Benedet. The two played well on the edges, blocking cleanly and sealing running lanes for their running backs. Benedet was playing in his first-career start at left tackle, too.
On defense, the Bears found their success in the trenches in the form of three tackles for loss and two sacks. With Grady Jarrett out, Gervon Dexter Sr. stepped up with 1.5 sacks on the evening.
The run defense showed the most improvement. The Commanders came into Monday averaging 5.5 yards per carry and 151 rushing yards per game as a team. The Bears held them to just 4.0 yards per carry and 124 yards rushing.
It’s fair to take it a step further, too. Quarterback Jayden Daniels rushed for 52 yards, most of which came on scramble plays. Factor that out, and Washington’s ball carriers rushed the ball 21 times for 72 yards. That’s a 3.4-yard-per-carry average.
While it’s not exactly the top of the league, it’s certainly an improvement from the chunk plays the Bears allowed to the Las Vegas Raiders and the late-game runs the Vikings ripped on the Bears.
On Monday, against a team that runs the ball very well, the Bears kept the Commanders’ running game from beating them.
A statement game for D’Andre Swift
The Bears have been looking for sparks on offense anywhere they can find them.
The sparks have been building. Rome Odunze made some. Luther Burden III made some others. D’Andre Swift created his spark on Monday.
"I just made something happen," Swift said after the game.
Swift didn’t just make anything happen. He had a statement game.
Swift rushed for a season-high 108 yards on Monday. He averaged 7.7 per carry. He also caught two passes for 67 yards, 55 of which came on his fourth-quarter touchdown, where he took a short pass to the left, made a player miss and did the rest.
That touchdown made it a two-point game in the fourth quarter, which set up Jake Moody’s heroics.
The Bears don’t find the success they had offensively on Monday without Swift. Even though he’s known for his shiftiness as a back, he still displayed plenty of power to run between the tackles and shred defenders.
Swift also gained 34 yards on the final drive of the game to set up Moody at the Washington 18-yard line, including runs of 15 yards and 10 yards. When Johnson said he took personally that the run game was weak, Swift did too.
It showed on Monday.
Moody’s magic is special – and earned
After Jake Moody’s 38-yard field goal stunned the Washington Commanders and gave the Bears a 25-24 road win, he was mobbed by his teammates.
It was a heartfelt moment for Moody, who has found a place with the Bears after getting cut by San Francisco. The only issue with the moment was that he had yet to meet most of his teammates.
"I can't wait to formally meet everyone else," Moody said.
Two days ago, Moody didn’t know he was playing. On Monday, he was tasked to fill in for Cairo Santos on primetime in a rainy environment.
That’s not the ideal time or place to revive your kicking career. But, it was what Moody was presented with. He took advantage.
"I think the change of scenery was really good for him," Johnson said.
Moody has certainly earned it.
When he signed with the Bears’ practice squad, he did so at a time when debates about Santos’ kicking range circulated. Would he come in and challenge Santos? That wasn’t on Sept. 12, just two days before the Bears played the Lions.
In the weeks since, Moody has always sitting in his locker at Halas Hall, tablet in hand, carefully studying ways to improve. That benefited the Bears, as his four made field goals set a franchise record for the most successful field goals in a Bears’ debut.
He’s also giving the Bears confidence in case Santos’ injury holds him back this week.
That’s because Moody never lost his confidence. He just needed a place to get it back in order.
"It's always good to have a fresh start," Moody said. "I always believed in myself."
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